20VC Eventbrite Founder, Julia Hartz on The Lessons Learned Scaling Eventbrite to Unicorn Valuation & $3Bn in Gross Ticket Sales

In an engaging episode of "20 Minutes VC," host Harry Stebbings converses with Julia Hartz, co-founder and CEO of Eventbrite, exploring her unconventional journey from television development to tech entrepreneurship. Hartz, who led Eventbrite to become the preeminent event technology platform, discusses the company's growth, fundraising achievements, and her transition from a career in television to co-founding a startup with her husband, Kevin Hartz. The discussion also touches on Eventbrite's customer-driven success, the challenges and strategies of CEO transition, and the company's future vision to expand beyond ticketing into a comprehensive platform for live experiences. Additionally, the episode features insights on productivity, the importance of time management, and the potential path to Eventbrite becoming a public company.

• Harry Stebbings hosts the 20 Minute VC podcast.
• Harry invites listeners to follow him on Snapchat.
• He expresses excitement about the episode featuring Julia Hartz.
• Harry highlights the spontaneous and engaging nature of the conversation with Julia.

This is the 20 minutes vc with me, Harry Stebings and you can add me on Snapchat at h stepbings with two B's. I know, I'd love to see you there, but to the show today and I'm very, very excited for this one. It was one of those where you just instantly hit it off with the.

Harry introduces the podcast and his social media, setting the stage for the episode and indicating a strong rapport with his guest.

• Julia Hartz is the co-founder and CEO of Eventbrite.
• Eventbrite is a leading event technology platform with over 2 million events annually.
• The company has raised significant funding from notable investors.
• Julia has led Eventbrite to success and has been recognized for her achievements and the company's workplace culture.

So joining me for the fun discussion, I'm thrilled to welcome Julia Hart, cofounder and CEO at Eventbrite, the unicorn startup that is the world's largest event technology platform, powering over 2 million events around the world each year.

Harry introduces Julia Hartz and Eventbrite, emphasizing the company's scale and Julia's leadership role.

• People operations are crucial for founders and operators.
• Lattice is recommended for performance management and employee development.
• Lattice offers tools like 360 performance reviews, OKR tracking, and continuous feedback.

But before we move into the show, stay if you're a founder or operator, your most important job is people operations, whether that be hiring execs, developing managers, or retaining top talent.

Harry transitions to discuss the importance of managing and developing talent within a company, advocating for Lattice's services.

• Recurli is a subscription management platform.
• It helps companies increase revenue and reduce churn.
• Recurli is trusted by a range of well-known companies.

And speaking of number one, there you must check out Recurli, the company powering subscription success with Recurli's enterprise cost subscription management platform providing rapid time to value without requiring massive integration, effort and expense.

Harry introduces Recurli as a solution for companies looking to improve their subscription models and financial outcomes.

• Julia did not initially aim to become an entrepreneur.
• She was a dedicated student and ballerina, later focusing on a career in television development.
• Julia worked at MTV and FX Networks, contributing to shows like "Jackass" and "Nip/Tuck."
• She felt frustrated by the slow pace of the television industry.

Well, I like to say that I'm really not supposed to be here, meaning I didn't set my sights on becoming an entrepreneur when I was young. I worked hard and was a very diligent student in ballerina.

Julia shares her background, illustrating a different initial career path that did not involve entrepreneurship.

• Julia met Kevin Hartz at a wedding.
• They immediately connected and started a long-distance relationship between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
• Kevin Hartz played a significant role in Julia's path to co-founding Eventbrite.

And I was sitting in the church minding my own business, and a man named Kevin Hartz came and sat next to me and quite literally, Harry. The rest was history.

Julia recounts the serendipitous meeting with Kevin Hartz, which marked the beginning of both a personal and professional partnership.

• Julia Hartz was engaged and considering a job offer from Current TV, founded by Al Gore and Joel Hyatt.
• The offer from Current TV was for a role in San Francisco, which was appealing as it was close to where Julia and her fiancé, Kevin, were from.
• Current TV's offer was $50,000, which was less than Julia's current salary of $80,000.
• Kevin, having just stepped down as CEO of his company, Zoom, presented Julia with an alternative to join him in starting a new venture.
• Kevin showed Julia the first YouTube video and emphasized the importance of knowing one's worth and not settling for less.
• He proposed they bootstrap a company together, investing all their savings.
• Julia transitions from her corporate job to starting Eventbrite in a makeshift office, questioning the decision but trusting in Kevin's optimism.

"And he gave me a offer I couldn't refuse, which was, it was threefold. The first point was, this idea is great, but let me show you something that I think is going to crush this. And he showed me the very first YouTube video that had just been published."

This quote highlights Kevin's vision and his attempt to convince Julia that they could create something more impactful than Current TV, using the emergence of YouTube as an example.

• Julia and Kevin have different but complementary skill sets; Kevin is a natural-born entrepreneur with eternal optimism, while Julia is a natural-born operator who enjoys problem-solving.
• They both enjoy breaking conventional rules and wisdom.
• Eventbrite started without a clear business model or even a name, just the idea of using technology to democratize an industry.
• Julia learned to love risks and seek change, which was a transformation from her initial risk-averse nature.

"I'm a natural born operator, so I look at a set of messy facts or a giant hairball, and I get excited because I can see how you can fix it, how you can make it better, how you can make it faster, how you can even make it bigger."

Julia describes her ability to thrive in complex situations and her role in shaping the operational side of Eventbrite, contrasting her strengths with Kevin's entrepreneurial spirit.

• Julia and Kevin's relationship evolved alongside the growth of Eventbrite.
• They laughed at the idea of doing everything 'wrong' by starting a company together as an engaged couple and wanting to create a horizontal platform in a challenging industry.
• They were straightforward with each other about the possibility of failure and had plans for an exit strategy for one of them if needed.
• The couple enjoyed working together and found parallels between building a company and creating a family.
• The most challenging part for Julia has been not working with Kevin in the past twelve months, indicating their strong preference for collaboration.

"But we were very open and honest with each other in that it probably won't work out. And so we kept telling each other that and having plans for what if it doesn't work out? Let's just make sure we know a, the priorities and b, the exit strategy for one of us."

This quote reflects the pragmatic approach Julia and Kevin took when starting Eventbrite, acknowledging the high risk of failure and preparing for it while maintaining their personal relationship as a priority.

• The realization that Eventbrite was successful came from customer adoption and feedback.
• Initially used by tech bloggers for ticketed events, Eventbrite's turning point was when speed dating organizers in New York chose the platform, indicating a broader market appeal beyond the tech community.
• Julia and Kevin's hands-on approach, including working the door at the first TechCrunch Disrupt, showed their deep involvement in the early stages of the company.

"And it was really when all of a sudden speed dating organizers in New York adopted eventbrite as their platform of choice, that I realized we had something because it was so far and gone from tech meet"

This quote signifies the moment of validation for Eventbrite when it was embraced by a completely different customer segment, demonstrating its potential to serve a wide variety of event organizers.

• Eventbrite experienced organic growth across different genres and geographies.
• The platform was built on the PayPal API, which facilitated international business from the start.
• The variety of customers and events highlighted Eventbrite's potential as a category-agnostic service with wide geographic reach.

"ups and such a different genre, and then on the east coast, and it came onto the platform organically. That was really a pinnacle moment for us because we realized that what we were creating was, in fact, category agnostic."

This quote emphasizes the realization by the Eventbrite team that their platform was not limited to specific event types or locations, enabling them to cater to a diverse range of events.

• Trust is crucial for a CEO transition, especially within the partnership and team.
• Intentionality about what is best for the company's future is needed to guide the transition.
• Acceptance of change and resilience are essential qualities for the team undergoing a leadership shift.
• Eventbrite experienced significant changes, including CEO and CFO transitions, while maintaining profitability and growth.

"Trust. I mean, there just has to be an incredible amount of trust because there is in the partnership or in the team itself?"

This quote highlights the importance of trust in the partnership and team during a CEO transition.

"I think it also takes intention and the right intention."

The quote underscores the need for clear intentions focused on the company's needs during a leadership change.

"I think the third thing it takes is a willingness to accept change."

This quote indicates that adapting to change is a critical component of a successful CEO transition.

• Being married to the previous CEO adds complexity to the role of the successor.
• There is no opportunity to blame the predecessor, which creates a unique dynamic in leadership.
• The situation can lead to humorous scenarios in personal life, such as awkward dinner dates.

"No, not at all. That's actually the funny part. So here's the really interesting part. When you are married to the prior CEO, and of course, he's the esteemed chairman of our board and obviously my mentor and thought partner, first and foremost, and life partner, but when you're married to the previous CEO, you don't get to blame it on the last guy."

This quote conveys the humorous and complex situation of succeeding a CEO to whom you are married, eliminating the possibility of blaming the predecessor.

• Balancing the present-day success of the ticketing business with future innovation is crucial.
• Eventbrite's ticketing business is substantial, but there is a need to invest in future businesses on the platform.
• The CEO focuses on understanding customers and thinking about future services like on-site event improvements and democratizing event sponsorship.
• Eventbrite has an incubation structure to develop new business ideas, which is also a fun process for the team.

"I think it's something that's a bit more of an art than a science. So it's really easy to get sucked into the vortex of present day."

This quote reflects the challenge of not being consumed by the current success and ensuring focus on future growth and innovation.

"Our mission is to help anybody in the world manifest and access live experiences."

The quote outlines Eventbrite's mission, which extends beyond ticketing to enabling global access to live experiences.

"But then I really force myself to think more about the future and more about new businesses."

This quote emphasizes the deliberate effort to focus on future opportunities and new business ventures.

• The quickfire round is a favorite segment for the podcast host and guests.
• The guest, Julia Hartz, expresses enthusiasm for the upcoming quickfire round.

"I say a short statement, so excited for this."

Julia Hartz shows eagerness for the quickfire round, indicating its enjoyable nature as part of the podcast experience.

• Julia Hartz mentions her favorite book is "Overwhelmed" by Bridget Schultze.
• The book is nonfiction and examines the modern workforce, the integration of play, work, and life, time utilization, the concept of being busy as a status symbol, and gender roles.
• Bridget Schultze uses history and science to lay out her points and suggests practical considerations for improving work and life balance.

"Why overwhelmed by Bridget Schultze, who is a Washington postwriter. And the reason why I love this book, even though it's a nonfiction, is it's incredibly relevant to today's sort of workforce, and it reimagines a workforce that combines play and work and life, and it examines how we utilize our time and why busy is a badge of honor and gender roles within society. And those are all things that I'm fascinated by. And I think Bridget does a great job of laying everything out with history and science and some maybe practical things to think about and changing things for the better."

The quote explains why Julia Hartz is drawn to the book "Overwhelmed" and highlights the themes that resonate with her, such as the modern approach to work-life balance and societal expectations.

• Julia Hartz expresses her belief that San Francisco is the best city in the world.
• This belief seems to be contrary to what others around her believe.

"I believe that San Francisco is the best city in the world."

The quote is Julia Hartz's personal opinion about San Francisco, indicating her strong affinity for the city.

• Julia Hartz discusses the challenge of following in the footsteps of Kevin, the prior Eventbrite CEO.
• She describes the need to stop asking "What would Kevin do?" to make her own decisions and focus on her strengths.
• She mentions the importance of not getting in her own way by comparing herself to Kevin.

"I had to actively tell myself that on January 1 of this year, I was going to stop saying, what would Kevin do? So I killed WWKD, and I had to start making my own decisions."

The quote reveals Julia's decision to forge her path and leadership style rather than trying to emulate her predecessor, which she found counterproductive.

• Julia Hartz enjoys reading "the Skimm," Adam Lashinski's newsletter from Fortune, and "Inside Daily Brief."
• She appreciates the Skimm's humorous approach and its appeal to the millennial generation, especially women.

"I love the skim. I think they've absolutely tapped into know the millennial generation, and particularly females think and kind of, they take a humorous approach."

The quote highlights Julia's preference for newsletters that are informative yet engaging, with a particular mention of the Skimm's approach to connecting with its audience.

• Julia Hartz's top productivity tool is Asana (or Asana, as the founder calls it), a task management and collaboration app.
• She emphasizes the importance of being thoughtful about time management and prioritization.
• Julia looks up to Henry Ellenbogen from T. Rowe Price as a mentor in time management and productivity.

"The second thing is just being very thoughtful about time. So, Henry Ellen Bogan from T Row is an investor and a mentor, and he is a time ninja."

This quote stresses the significance of time management and prioritization as key aspects of productivity, which Julia Hartz has learned from her mentor, Henry Ellenbogen.

• Julia Hartz outlines the future of Eventbrite, suggesting growth as an independent company, possibly as a public company.
• Eventbrite plans to expand globally, strengthen its presence in existing markets, and develop a more defined platform approach.
• The vision for Eventbrite is to be more than just a ticketing platform but a global platform for all aspects of live experiences.

"And I think the future of eventbrite looks much more than just being the largest ticketing platform, but actually being the global platform for all aspects of live experiences."

The quote describes the ambitious goals for Eventbrite to expand its services and influence in the live experience industry globally.

• Julia Hartz thanks Harry for the interview and expresses pleasure in participating.
• Harry Stebbings thanks Julia for sharing her insights and Kevin for facilitating the interview and providing questions.
• Harry encourages listeners to follow Julia and himself on social media for behind-the-scenes content.

"Thank you, Harry. It was a pleasure."

The quote is Julia Hartz's expression of gratitude for the interview, indicating a positive interaction with the host, Harry Stebbings.

• Lattice is introduced as the leading performance management solution for growing companies, offering tools for reviews, feedback, goal tracking, and meetings.
• Recurly is presented as a subscription management platform that can increase revenue and reduce churn, trusted by major companies.

"With Lattice, it's easy to launch 360 performance review cycles as often as you want, and you also get an incredible continuous feedback system with OKR goal tracking, real time feedback, and one on one meetings to ensure employees get feedback between reviews."

This quote explains the benefits of using Lattice for performance management, emphasizing its comprehensive features that facilitate continuous employee development and feedback.